Central ND News

Another round of the Human Relations Committee's Community Conversations will take place on May 8, from 6 PM to 8 PM. The venue is the Tom Baker Meeting Room, located in the lower level of the City/County Building at 221 North Fifth Street.

The session will focus on public transportation funding established by a citizen vote last November. The vote resulted in a half-cent sales tax increase, approved by 60% of voters, which directs three-tenths to public safety and two-tenths to public transportation.

The event will consist of two parts. First, a panel of five community members from diverse backgrounds will address various predetermined questions. Then, participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback regarding transportation barriers and solutions. The panelists include:

- Matthew Aricou, Fixed-Route Rider

- Susan Dingle, Paratransit Rider

- Heather May, City of Bismarck Community Integration Coordinator

- Sherrice Roness, Bismarck Public Schools Transitions Coordinator

- Trevor Vannett, Paratransit Rider

“This Community Conversation forum should be seen as a critical opportunity for the public to share input on this topic,” said Michael Connelly, Bismarck City Commissioner and Transportation Steering Committee member. “We are also providing a mechanism for the public to share input leading up to this public forum and so it cannot be stressed enough that we want to hear from anyone who has thoughts on how we can make public transportation for the elderly, disabled and people of low socioeconomic status in our community better, more viable, more accessible, more cost effective and something that will truly be a resource for all our citizens, moving forward.”

Thoughts can also be shared through an online submission form, which asks two questions:

1. What challenges do you, or the individual(s) you serve, experience as it relates to accessible transportation in the city?

2. What ideas or potential solutions do you have to address these barriers?

The form is accessible until 11:59 PM on May 11. Submissions will be reviewed by the Human Relations Committee, the Transportation Steering Committee, and the Bismarck City Commission. The Transportation Steering Committee aims to identify funding priorities by the end of June 2025 and report their findings to the Bismarck City Commission.